


Book

by MadamRed



Series: One Word Prompts (Tumblr) [4]
Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: F/M, First Meetings, Fluff, Reading
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-04
Updated: 2016-08-04
Packaged: 2018-07-29 05:58:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 795
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7672741
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MadamRed/pseuds/MadamRed
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>One word prompt requested on Tumblr: Book</p>
            </blockquote>





	Book

Tired of the office buzz, you decided to grab your purse and head out to a cafeteria nearby to have lunch. Upon arriving, you realised that quite a few people from your building had had the same idea since you recognised a few faces and saw the little FBI badges hanging from their coats.

You asked the barista for a coffee and a sandwich to go, and then left the place with your order in hand to find an empty bench in the square across the street. What you didn’t take into account was that the square was usually filled with parents and nannies _plus_ their children at that time of day. There was only one bench with one person sitting on it. Once you got closer to the stranger, you saw that he also had an FBI badge hanging from his bag and that he was quietly sipping his own cup of coffee from the same cafeteria as he read in silence.

You debated whether to try and wait for another bench to be vacated but you really didn’t have that much time left if you actually wanted to _have_ lunch. And so you sat there, trying to make as little noise as possible. The stranger noticed you but never moved his eyes from the **book** he held in front of him. You took your own from inside your purse and had lunch as you read.

After fifteen minutes, he got up first and gathered his stuff. You decided to pretend to be focused on your book. It would feel awkward if you connected your eyes with him. The same thing occurred almost every day for about a month. Either one of you would find the other already sitting there, and you happily shared those few minutes of peace together during your lunch break.

With time, you started paying more attention to the books he brought with him... sometimes he read psychology books, some other times it was a book in a language that you didn’t even recognise, sometimes, he was simply enjoying a classic mystery novel. You knew he did the same, though; you had noticed a few times how he moved his head ever so slightly from the page he was on to the book sitting on your lap as you put your purse on the ground between your feet. It was... kind of thrilling to know that this guy took the time to check out what you read. He was slowly getting glimpses of where your interests laid, and vice versa.

One day, as you approached your favourite spot, you noticed that he wasn’t there, and you felt your heart sink a bit in your chest, just like each time he didn’t show up. You had done a little research and found out that he was part of the BAU, so you knew he had to travel a fair amount. Even though you understood, not seeing him was still disappointing.

When you reached the worn-out, wooden bench, however, your heart made a flip at the sight that greeted you. You sat down and grabbed the book that had a note with your name written on it and a red ribbon that kept it in place. You saw that the book was the new sequel to one of the very first novels you had read in his company. You couldn’t help but smile as you opened the note and read the message he wrote for you:

_“Dear (Y/n),_

_Please, don’t find this gift or note creepy. I had a co-worker search for your name... I hope that you don’t mind. I’m sorry that I couldn’t give this to you in person as I had planned to do, but we just got called for a case in the west coast._

_I saw this book in the store a couple of days ago and remembered you reading another title by this author, so I thought you’d like to have it._

_I would like to arrange another day for our daily reading session, or maybe we could have dinner one night, if you would like to._

_Here’s my number in case you want to contact me, although I may not be able to answer right away._

_I hope to see you soon,_

_Spencer”_

When you finished reading it, you couldn’t contain the little giggles coming out of your mouth. You texted him a couple of hours later during your break:

_“Fancy dress? Or do you plan on taking me to a more casual restaurant?”_

You got a reply not two minutes later saying that you should wear whatever made you feel more comfortable, and you felt your heart jump again. Yes, you had definitely chosen the best seat in the whole city that day.


End file.
